1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to devices for dispensing heated flowable materials from containers and, more particularly, to devices for dispensing heated flowable materials such as food products from flexible packages.
2. Reference to Prior Art
It is common practice to dispense cheese sauce, catsup, mustard and other flowable food products from a can or other similar container with a pump-like dispenser. In order to prevent bacterial growth in low acid food products, such as cheese sauce, those products must be maintained at or above, an elevated temperature, e.g. 140 F, after the can or container is opened.
One type of pump dispenser widely used for low acid products has a water jacket which surrounds a large part of the can or container, and the water is heated to the required temperature. The dispensing nozzle and other parts of the dispensing device must be cleaned at regular intervals, for example, at the end of each day. Care must be taken to insure that the water jacket contains a sufficient amount of water to prevent the heating element from burning out. In many cases, a substantial amount of cheese sauce or the like in the bottom of the can or container is not dispensed by the pump. Also, the heated water jacket can cause a considerable build up of condensation on the exterior and inside the dispenser.
Some food products are sold in flexible packages and dispensed from those packages. However, prior dispensers for flexible packages either are quite complicated and, therefore, are substantially more expensive than pump type dispensers described above, or have one or more other shortcomings.
Barnard et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,102,015 relates to a dispenser for dispensing fluid food products from bags through nozzles attached thereto. The dispenser includes an actuator plate having V-shaped slots. A push rod carries the actuator plate and positions a selected V-shaped slot adjacent to the selected nozzle. The rod can be pushed to engage a switch and activate a motor which moves the actuator plate so that a V-shaped slot engages a nozzle to dispense the selected fluid.
Hogan U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,690,307 and 4,513,885 relate to a dispensing system including a housing for storing a sealed flexible package containing a flowable food product and compressible flow tube connected to a discharge fitment on the package. Manual operation of a rotor or peristatic pump in the housing compresses the tube to cause the product to be dispensed from the package.
Bond U.S. Pat. No. 4,796,788 relates to dispensing substances which will not readily flow by gravity from bag-in-box packages. The bag includes separate product and pressure chambers. Coupling fitments connect independently to the respective chambers. To dispense the product, a dispensing valve on the product fitment is opened and pressure is supplied to the pressure chamber to expand it and exert pressure on the product chamber.